Seoul is city in South Korea that has been serving as a capital for centuries. In the 14th century, a fortress wall was built around Seoul, and it has 4 great gates and 4 small gates. One of the gate is called Sungnyemun...

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Meet Cortana. The latest software produced by Microsoft. Cortana is an intelligent personal assistant developed for Windows Phone, Microsoft Band, and Windows 10. It is named after Cortana, an artificial intelligence character in Microsoft's Halo video game series, with Jen Taylor, the character's voice actress, returning to voice the personal assistant's US-specific version. As of 2015, Cortana is available as a beta to all users of Windows Phone 8.1 in the United States (US English), China (Mandarin Chinese), and the United Kingdom (UK English). Users in certain countries can also choose to opt-in to the alpha for the English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish versions of Cortana as of August 2014.

Cortana's features include being able to set reminders, recognize natural voice without the user having to input a predefined series of commands, and answer questions using information from Bing (like current weather and traffic conditions, sports scores, and biographies). Windows 8.1's universal Bing SmartSearch features are incorporated into Cortana, which replaces the previous Bing Search app which is activated when a user presses the "Search" button on their device. Cortana also includes a music recognition service. Cortana can also roll dice and flip a coin by asking the commands "roll a dice" (one die), "roll the dice" (two dice), and "flip a coin", Concert Watch is a feature that helps Cortana determine which bands or musicians you are interested in by monitoring your Bing searches. Cortana also integrates with the Microsoft Band for Windows Phone devices if connected via bluetooth. On the Microsoft Band Cortana can make reminders and bring phone notifications. Most versions of Cortana take the form of two nested, animated circles. The circles are animated to indicate certain activities such as searching or talking.

Cortana updates are delivered independently of those to the main Windows Phone OS, allowing Microsoft to provide new features at a faster pace. Though not all Cortana-related features can be updated this manner as some features such as "Hey Cortana" require the Windows Phone update service. Wanna try?

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Seoul is city in South Korea that has been serving as a capital for centuries. In the 14th century, a fortress wall was built around Seoul, and it has 4 great gates and 4 small gates. One of the gate is called Sungnyemun.

Namdaemun, (남대문) or officially known as the Sungnyemun (숭례문 ) is a historic pagoda-style gateway, and is designated as the first National Treasure of South Korea. It was once one of the three major gateways that still exists through Seoul's city walls which had a stone circuit of 18.2 kilometres (11.3 mi) and stood up to 6.1 metres (20 ft) high. It was first built in the last year of King Taejo of Joseon's reign in 1398, and rebuilt in 1447, during the 29th year of King Sejong the Great of Joseon's reign.

The South Korean government, as written in hanja on the wooden structure, officially calls the landmark, Sungnyemun, (English: Gate of Exalted Ceremonies) even though it has been more commonly known as Namdaemun (English: Great Southern Gate) since the Joseon Dynasty. The disparity is due to the colonial period when the Japanese advocated the name Namdaemun.

Different from the other gates, Sungnyemun’s tablet has its name written vertically. When the first king of Joseon Dynasty, Lee Seong-Gye (reign 1335-1408), had constructed the capital city, he believed that fire will reach to Gyeongbokgung Palace as well as the capital city as Mt. Gwanaksan of Seoul is shaped like fire according to feng-shui principles. Sungnyemun’s name means fire, which is from the harmony of the Five Elements and if written vertically, the Chinese character ‘fire’ looks as if it is providing protection. This was Taejong’s (1367-1422) first son, Yangnyeongdaegun’s (1394-1462) famous writing.

Before the 2008 fire, Sungnyemun was the oldest wooden structure in Seoul. The city gate, made of wood and stone with a two-tiered, pagoda-shaped tiled roof, was completed in 1398 and originally used to greet foreign emissaries, control access to the capital city, and keep out Siberian Tigers, which have long been gone from the area. Construction began in 1395 during the fourth year of the reign of King Taejo of Joseon and was finished in 1398. The structure was rebuilt in 1447 and was renovated several times since. It was originally one of three main gates, the others being the East Gate (Dongdaemun) and the now-demolished West Gate in the Seodaemun-gu district, named after the old gate.

Now, Sungnyemun stands in the middle of the city facing towards the main streets. Every citizen can see the beauty of Korea's national treasure that still survive until now. With the beautiful grasses and flowers surround it, people can enjoy and relax themselves in their busy lifestyle. In the heart of modern Seoul, Sungnyemun fills the deficiency of the city's traditional side.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Raja Ampat is a magnificent archipelago in Indonesia. It is located off the northwest tip of Bird's Head Peninsula on the island of New Guinea, in Indonesia's West Papua province. Raja Ampat is actually a regency that encompasses more than 40,000 km² of land and sea, which also contains Cenderawasih Bay, the largest marine national park in Indonesia. The name of Raja Ampat comes from local mythology that tells about a woman who finds seven eggs. Four of the seven eggs hatch and become kings that occupy four of Raja Ampat biggest islands whilst the other three become a ghost, a woman, and a stone.

Marine life of Raja Ampat

The oceanic natural resources around Raja Ampat give it significant potential as a tourist area. Many sources place Raja Ampat as one of their top ten most popular places for diving whilst it retains the number one ranking in terms of underwater biodiversity. The area's massive coral colonies along with relatively high sea surface temperatures, also suggest that its reefs may be relatively resistant to threats like coral bleaching and coral disease, which now jeopardize the survival of other coral ecosystems around the world. The Raja Ampat islands are remote and relatively undisturbed by humans.

The high marine diversity in Raja Ampat is strongly influenced by its position between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as coral and fish larvae are more easily shared between the two oceans. Raja Ampat's coral diversity, resilience, and role as a source for larval dispersal make it a global priority for marine protection.

1,508 fish species, 537 coral species (a remarkable 96% of all scleractinia recorded from Indonesia are likely to occur in these islands and 75% of all species that exist in the world[4]), and 699 mollusk species, the variety of marine life is staggering.[5] Some areas boast enormous schools of fish and regular sightings of sharks, such as wobbegongs. Although accessing the islands is not that difficult, it takes some time. It takes six hours flight from Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia to Sorong. Then, taking a boat to reach the islands is necessary.

Bored of your city lifestyle? Just take a deep breath, and enjoy Raja Ampat!

Friday, October 3, 2014

Angel of The North is one of the famous contemporary statues in the world. It is located in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. Designed by Antony Gormley, the statue is a steel sculpture of an angel,
20 metres (66 ft) tall, with wings measuring 54 metres (177 ft) across. The wings do not stand straight sideways, but are angled 3.5 degrees forward; Gormley did this to create "a sense of embrace". It stands on a hill on the southern edge of Low Fell, overlooking the A1 and A167 roads into Tyneside, and the East Coast Main Line rail route, south of the site of Team Colliery.

Work began on the project in 1994 and cost £1 million. Most of the project funding was provided by the National Lottery. The Angel was finished on 16 February 1998.

Due to its exposed location, the sculpture was built to withstand winds of over 100 mph (160 km/h). Thus, foundations containing 600 tonnes of concrete anchor the sculpture to rock 70 feet (21 m) below. The sculpture was built at Hartlepool Steel Fabrications Ltd using Corten weather resistant steel. It was made in three parts—with the body weighing 100 tonnes and two wings weighing 50 tonnes each—then brought to its site by road. It took five hours for the body to be transported from its construction site in Hartlepool, up the A19 road to the site. The sculpture is also known by some local people as the "Gateshead Flasher", because of its location and appearance.

According to Gormley, the significance of an angel was three-fold: first, to signify that beneath the site of its construction, coal miners worked for two centuries; second, to grasp the transition from an industrial to information age, and third, to serve as a focus for our evolving hopes and fears

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Malaysia is one of world's traditional monarchies that still exists until now. As we know, Malaysia's monarchy system is unique. Not just like any other kingdoms, Malaysia uses the federal constitutional monarchy system.

Nine of the states of Malaysia are constitutionally headed by traditional Malay rulers. The nine states are collectively referred to as the Malay States. State constitutions limit eligibility for the thrones to male Malay Muslim of royal descent. Seven are hereditary monarchies based on agnatic primogeniture; they are Kedah, Kelantan, Johor, Perlis, Pahang, Selangor and Terengganu. In Perak, the throne rotates among three branches of the royal family loosely based on agnatic seniority. One state, Negeri Sembilan, is an elective monarchy; the ruler is elected from male members of the royal family by hereditary chiefs. All rulers except those of Perlis and Negeri Sembilan use the title Sultan. The ruler of Perlis is styled Raja, while the ruler of Negeri Sembilan is known as Yamtuan Besar.

Every five years or when a vacancy occurs, the rulers convene in the Conference of Rulers (Malay: Majlis Raja-Raja) to elect among themselves the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the federal constitutional monarch and head of state of Malaysia. As the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is elected among the rulers, Malaysia as a whole is also an elective monarchy.

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong is the federal head of state. His symbolic roles include being the Commander-in-Chief of the Malaysian Armed Forces, and carrying out diplomatic functions such as receiving foreign diplomats and representing Malaysia on state visits. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong is the head of Islam in his own state, the four states without rulers (Penang, Malacca, Sabah and Sarawak) and the Federal Territories. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong is required to delegate all his state powers to a regent, except for the role of head of Islam. Similar to other rulers, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong acts on the advice of the Prime Minister, and has discretionary powers in appointing the Prime Minister that commands a majority in the Dewan Rakyat, the lower house of the Parliament, and refusing a dissolution of the Parliament. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong also appoints the Yang di-Pertua Negeri, the ceremonial governors for the four states without rulers, on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers of the states.

A unique feature of the constitutional monarchy in Malaysia is the Conference of Rulers, consisting of the nine rulers and the four Yang di-Pertua Negeris. The Conference convenes triannually to discuss various issues related to state and national policies. The most important role of the Conference is to elect the Yang di-Pertuan Agong every five years or when a vacancy occurs. Only the rulers participate in the election of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, as well as discussions related to rulers' privileges and religious observances. The Conference's other role in the federal governance of the country is to give consent to amendments of certain entrenched provisions of the federal constitution, namely those pertaining to the status of the rulers, the special privileges of the Bumiputra, the status of the Malay language as the national language, and the status of Islam as the religion of the federation.

The 14th and current Yang di-Pertuan Agong is Sultan Abdul Halim of Kedah. His reign began on 13 December 2011 after his election by the Conference of Rulers. He is the first ruler to hold the position twice, having served as the fifth Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1970 to 1975, as well as the oldest elected to the office at the age of 83. The installation of the new Yang di-Pertuan Agong was held on 11 April 2012, at the new Istana Negara at Jalan Duta.